NEWSBYGLENNA GORDON

This guest post was written by Glenna Gordon, a freelance photographer and journalist based in Monrovia, Liberia. She blogs as the Scarlett Lion. She's usually broke.

I met a young woman in Monrovia who was incredibly charismatic, engaging, and involved in a lot of different activities. Though I met her while reporting on one thing, our conversation drifted and she ended up telling me about an innovative radio show she’s on where she and other young people discuss health issues.

Sounded like a great story. I arranged to come by the next time her group was recording. The show is sponsored by an NGO, we’ll call then NQED. I didn’t call NQED to ask before showing up. Technically, I should have done this but I figured it wasn’t a big deal. Actually, I think I didn’t even think about it. This wasn’t high security or high profile or anything like that – just about a cool radio show and some great young people.

When I showed up, the director of NQED was there. I didn’t introduce myself because I didn’t know him. Instead, I talked to the young woman I knew. The director came over to me and introduced himself. I needed to write a letter requesting permission to be there, he said. An email would suffice, but I couldn’t stay on that day.

Here’s the catch though: I’m a freelance journalist. Though I do all right for myself, I usually have to pay all of my costs out of pocket. That means I paid for my transportation to get to the show that day, and I’d have to pay that again another day.

Not a big deal. Yet.